Omaha daily bee., 1887-03-20
every day of the opening of trunks at the
railway stations and finding the
BODIES OF HUMAN VICTIMS

the jury, the man who has murd-
cred his wife has been known to cut
the body up and burn it, The man who
has murdered his wife has been known
to put the body in sack and drag il to
the river and put stones in and sink it. A
man who has murdered his wife has been
known to bury it; man who has
murdered his wife has been known to hide
the body in the wood.pile and the woman
who poisoned her husband to death
has been known to dress him for the fun.
eral We are told here that this man,
after jury at the last trial had found a
verdict of mansaughter, made applica-
ton for new trial. Why should he have
done that when he might have got off
through asother trial with the prejudice,
with public opinion commanding his con-
viction? Gentlemen of the jury, the fling
OF II motion for a new trial in Il case of
conviction is just rs regular rs the the
plea at the bar of not guilty in Il criminal
case. will venture to say, gentlemen
of the jury, that had these gentlemen
supposed for one moment that new
trial would have beeen granted, that that
granted and granted quickly.
Why it is not for me to say, but 1t is
enough that he has been held here since
for murder without the benefit of bail
do not no. know that ought to keep
you here any longer, only possibly to re-
fer to this one matter in regard to the
manner in which Mr.. Lauer kept his
house mt the time of this killing and for
some time before in regard to the door
key. The doors leading out of the room
occupied by himself and wife had wire
fastening on them. For what purpose
was thisg Why he says to protect himself
from burglars, and wncn he was in the
house that night the door leading into
the hall was fastened. The door leading
into the kitchen was fastened, and all the
doors leading out of that room were fas-
tened but the front door was not fastened
and the key was under the mat This is
20 guard against burglars. Miss Minerva
Lauer swears that that was where it was
generally kept-under the mat at the
front door, and yet this fastening was for
the purpose of protecting him from
burglars. If this was protection against
burglars, where do you suppose that
these two burglars talking together in
the room came from?
Now, gentlemen, l don't know as I
ought to take your time any longer;
submit this case to you, and in few min
uutes it will be IN your hands. We call
upon you to do your duty. You may
return q verdict into this court Of
not guilty; it is in your power
to do it. Nothing can stop your dong it
If you will but you will put an endorse
ment on that verdict that can never be
erased; that verdict will be endorsed
AS A LICENSE TO MURDER.
1t 1t be true that l can escape the killing
OF Il human being by saying, Il took him
for burglar then my victim is IN my
power: sleep IN the same room with
him; send him out of doors; he comes
back again, | iircat him, 1 tell the neigh
bors and public, l took him for a burglar.
John w. Lauer. if you took her for
dition at 9 o'clock in the morning? If
you took her for a burglar, how came
the burglars to be talking to each other
at 2 o'clock in the morning? If you took
her for burglar, how came her hair to
be disheveled; and down over her body
at O'Clock in the morning? Ifyou took
her for a burglar, if it was so dark you
could not see her, how came she to be
talking out in the other room to the bird
or otherwise at o'clock in the morning?
Did she not in the dark? 1t you took her
for q burglar. how do you find her hair
disheveled and hairpins in different parts
Of it and on her left hand a cut across the
thumb made with needle or q
Rn, freshly y,oso made sss +rud3 How comes
TO do is to say, L took her for burglar
HOW CAME IT.
How is 1t that's woman just rising from
a bed, but moment before 1t is claimed
returning to the bed is found in this con-
dition. hair down, hairpins scattered
through, thumb cut and the blood in
five minutes flowing so freely as to have
stained nearly thirteen inches on either
side of her head or nearly three feet over
as that from a quiet body, or is it after
there has been a struggle and in the ex-
citement' Is 1t after she has probably
said. L have thought l would live
with you If you killed me but / can
not stand this torture. Either kill
me or must go; Kill me or must leave
you; and, do you suppose, knowing John
John w. Lauer contemplated separa-
ton with his wife, of her making an ap-
plcation for a divorce, coming into this
court and telling the story of her wrongs,
do you believe for moment, thinking of
that, thinking further that she might
marry again, that she might take that
husband into the house that he gave her
which was her. property, with respect to
which she could defy him, do you, sup
would not have killed her rather than to
have her do 1t?
1t is said that you are now going home
and Mr.. Thurston says, l have a little
| girl that am going home to see, and
want to tell her that l have done my
duty. When he tells her that want
| him to tell the story of Sallie Lauer
Gentlemen, you have families. some of
you have wives, some of you have daugh-
ters, some of you have sisters. and some
of you have mothers. lwant you gentle
men of the jury after you talk this mat.
ter over say my friend Thurston has said
l want you when you return to this court
room after you have returned your ver-
dict here to 60 to your family, talk to
your mother, talk to your wife, talk to
| your little children and tell them the
story of Sallie Lauer; tell them you first
knew her as little child in this testi.
mony; tell them that you knew her when
she was yet in her youth; tell them that
| you knew her when her father was taken
away from her. and she was left without
any protection other than that
| of her poor old mother who
was compelled to work day and
night to support these two little daugh
ters; tell them also that Sallie Lauer from
that time on was helping her mother, a
cheerful, happy child; tell them further
that in few short years that John w.
Lauer, whom you are just trying, sought
and weoed her, and afterwards they
| Uara N, lar. Oh II aftar ha n cro